British Journal of Radiology

The British Journal of Radiology (also known as BJR), allowing for several changes in name, is the oldest extant radiology journal, with its first issue published in May 1896 ¹. Its current (as of November 2017) Editors-in-Chief are Dr Simon Jackson (medical) and Prof Kevin Prise (scientific).

History

Archives of Clinical Skiagraphy

In its original iteration it was called Archives of Clinical Skiagraphy and edited by Sydney Rowland, although for one issue only, published in April 1897, it was called Archives of Skiagraphy ⁶.

Archives of the Roentgen Ray

After only one year the journal was renamed the Archives of the Roentgen Ray, issue one, of volume two, was published in July 1897 and was originally to be issued quarterly. It went on sale for 4 shillings, and it was sold in the USA for $1. The reasoning for changing the title was that the editors wanted to widen the scope of the journal to cover all things related to x-rays, not just the clinical applications ².  

Archives of Radiology and Electrotherapy

In mid-1915 the Archives of the Roentgen Ray was retitled the Archives of Radiology and Electrotherapy. This was in response to the growing importance of electrotherapy, i.e.which is the therapeutic usage of electrical energy, and in particular at this time, the therapeutic applications of x-rays, that which we now call radiotherapy ³. 

British Journal of Radiology

In late 1923 The Roentgen Society and the British Association for the Advancement of Radiology and Physiotherapy, BARP, (the latter the forerunner to the British Institute of Radiology), which was the owner of the Archives of Radiology and Electrotherapy, decided to work more closely together. As a result in 1924 the Archives' name was changed to the British Journal of Radiology (BARP section). At this stage the journal became monthly as it has been until the present day. Of note, at the same time, the Journal of the Roentgen Society was renamed the British Journal of Radiology (Roentgen section) ⁴. 

The name was very short-lived, and from 1925 to 1927 the journal was called the British Journal of Radiology: BIR section. 

In 1928, The Roentgen Society and British Institute of Radiology amalgamated, keeping the name of the latter organisation for the name of the new merged entity ⁵. Simultaneously it was decided that their two respective publications should merge to form the monthly British Journal of Radiology, its first issue came out in January 1928 ⁵. In view of this new era the volume and issue numbers were reset to one; from volume one of the Archives of Clinical Skiagraphy until the last volume (number 32) of the British Journal of Radiology: BIR section, the volume and issue numbers had increased consecutively.